In light of recent events (well, discussions) I realize that not everyone likes lots of picture, but this is what my strategy is as of now:

When my item arrives:

1. I get a picture of the packaging.
2. I get a picture of the lingerie laid flat (May include inside of garment if I feel it necessary [Wild Night Corset]).
3. I get pictures of accessories (if any) that came with garment.
4. I get pictures of any details on garment I feel necessary (like lace detail, or adjustable straps at different settings).
5. I get front view, back view, side view, three-quarter bust view.
6. I get pictures of any details on garment I feel necessary to get pics of while wearing (polka dot chemise ruffles and weird bust area).

I have to do this during the day and it can take over an hour and a half, depending on how the sun is cooperating (my crappy camera only seems to thrive with natural light).(Polka dot chemise review took almost two hours of just taking pictures, not including when the camera died and I had to wait for it to recharge. My white skin plus the white fabric were being too reflective and every photo was coming back wayyy overexposed....and then too dark, when I lowered the exposure one notch.)

7. Delete all blurry pictures, select clearest, then crop and resize those.

8. Take measurements of clothing.

9. Add in commentary and measurements via paint (YES, I do know how to use text boxes. I'm well-versed in Photoshop, Illustrator, and freakin' Flash, but I prefer to use the dinky Paint program and use the paintbrush because I just like the way the goofy writing looks. Yeah, strange, whatever.)

10. Upload pics to Photobucket.

11. Use pics as visual guide to let me know what goes in the review (Look at each pic and think, "What, if anything, should people know about this picture that is not already blatantly obvious or already written in. Or, if it is written in, will they immediately know what I'm talking about?").

12. Write review while wearing garment so I can potentially comment on feel of fabric as I write review.

13. Tack on washing directions from garment tag at the end of the review.

Anything on sizing, craftsmanship, material etc. is intuitively included as prompted by viewing the pictures I'm working from. less

Thank you so much! I love your lingerie reviews, as well. You've said before that you feel jealous of the "smaller gals" sometimes, and are self-conscious as a result, but your reviews always seem full of confidence, regardless, and make you come off as an empowered, self-secure woman, something that cannot be said about MANY *MANY* "smaller gals."

I often find myself thinking, I look okay, but I'll never have an OwlIdentified or TexasMama ass, and my thighs will always be smaller than I like (weirdly, I'm already plus size and wouldn't mind being bigger if I could pack it on in certain places, like other than my back or my arms, for instance). When I was in 8th grade I weighed 240 pounds, then realized how unhealthy I was (especially due to my fat distribution) and decided to lose weight. At my current 180-185 pounds, I know I'm a healthy weight (for my height, build, and musculature), but it's still a trial trying to become comfortable in my own skin, even though I lost all the weight nearly 5 years ago, and I hope that one day I become as resolute as you (at least seem to be).
There's no price on self confidence and contentment, and definitely no shortcuts to obtain it (diet pills come to mind), and I think you are inspirational.

This is going on longer than I intended.....and I need a snack



OH YEAH! Even though I've done very few reviews, I've gotten the "why, exactly, am I putting this much effort into this?" in my head before, and I've decided it's just because I like to help people, even though I really don't like to be around people that much. Writing reviews is a great way to combine those seemingly contrasting preferences. My personal thing. less

Oh wow. First of all - if I could give you my ass - trust me - I WOULD! Its one of my least favorite features.

I just turned to my husband and asked him about my butt and he said, "It seems to be a newish fad/fashion to have big butts..."

Uh...when I was growing up the ideal figures was 36/24/36 and a barbie-shaped ass was what you wanted (aka small).

I thought you weighed about 130-150 pounds so I'm tickled pink to see what you weigh because my goal is to get down to somewhere between 185 and 200 pounds. That means your reviews are going to give me even more hope!

I just asked my husband what the sexiest part of my body is...and he thought a moment and smiled and said, "Your heart and your mind".

See..he's learning tact!

I do love doing lingerie reviews and I think they're among my favorite because I feel like I'm really interacting with the comments and helping other plus size women.

I will share one last lesson that I learned years ago. We often compare the worst of ourselves - whether its our bodies, our marriage, our life - whatever - to the best of what someone else has. That's why we're often frustrated and discontent.

However, if we stop looking at the other person and instead focus on us and what we can change about ourselves and enjoy the parts we like - we tend to be happier.

Just a short "life lesson" from an older woman who has found that it helps a lot. less